“My Whole Life It’s Been Frustrating to Hear”: Lou Ferrigno Initially Discarded the Idea of Hearing Implant in 2021

The bodybuilding field is full of success stories. And such instances, where bodybuilders rose from poverty or crossed huge hurdles, have inspired many. Despite this, the world only witnesses the achievements and not the obstacles. For example, fans know Lou Ferrigno as a star bodybuilder who played the iconic role of The Incredible Hulk. However, Lou also faced struggles for a long time before finding some peace.

The star suffered from multiple ear infections since an early age. The series of infections led to his hearing loss. While he tried navigating through this, hearing aids were only so much help. Therefore, in 2021, he decided to take a big step.

Lou Ferrigno took some steps to hear

While Lou played a powerful character on screen, his real-life physical limitations dragged him down. In an interview with People magazine in 2021, The Incredible Hulk star revealed how difficult life was with his hearing problem. Due to multiple infections and nerve damage in his ear, his hearing suffered. He was diagnosed with 80-85% hearing loss. While he did use hearing aids to go about his day, their efficiency gradually decreased. This prompted the icon to seek a long-term solution for his hearing problem.

A cochlear implant was in the talks. But for that, surgery was necessary, and the Hulk was hesitant. Until then, the star resorted to reading lips and paying close attention to the ones who would talk to him. However, this soon got troublesome, and the former bodybuilder needed something better.

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Things took a turn for the better when Lou’s friend underwent the same surgery. While the recovery took some time, Lou could see the results in his friend. Hesitation flew out of the window and the star decided to take the big step. He recalled, “Why not get better? Because my whole life, it’s been frustrating to not be able to hear”

Did things get better for Lou?

The surgery involved a cochlear implant that was placed inside the ear. It would activate a few weeks after the procedure. Post-surgery, Lou temporarily lost hearing ability in his ear. But once his cochlear implant was active, things changed for the better. He quoted he was “hearing some sounds for the first time.” It was indeed miraculous.

After suffering for so long, Lou could finally hear. His hearing increased up to 65% and he believes that it would only get better.

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